The Monsters
by n.r.lisko
Summary: After a nuclear disaster in Japan, life on the island has begun to mutate. The world has quarantined the island for decades. Now, that quarantine is being lifted, and the world has been invited back to the island to take part in a unique contest. It is a challenge that will test the wisdom, strength, and resolve of all who enter. Who can tame the monsters that now inhabit the area?
1. Prologue: A Letter

**Prologue: A Letter **

My grandfather used to talk about the day that it happened. It was not a happy memory for him. And he did not tell it to his children and grandchildren to bring smiles to their faces. No, he told his stories to remind us. To warn us. And now, I feel I must tell you his story, for the same reasons.

The story always started the same way. He was still asleep the morning his assistant frantically woke him up. The day the reactor melted down.

The events that followed can only be described as cataclysmic failures by every disaster relief agency and government on the planet. As I'm sure you all remember, the initial numbers were staggering: 5 percent of the population within the fallout zone was immune. Everyone else died. Plants. Animals. Humans. Everything.

And then something odd happened. The radiation transformed from a poison that killed everything to an agent that mutated anything it came in contact with. Those that had been resistant or immune to the deadly effects started to show signs of mutation. Their entire molecular structure changed. To this day, no one is sure why. It showed up rapidly: within the second or third generation of animals and humans that had been exposed. The animals showed far more rapid mutations than the humans did. But the humans still changed. Only 1 percent of the human beings in Japan were unaffected.

That led to the quarantine. The island of Japan was completely shut off from the rest of the world. Nobody in, nobody out. Except my grandfather. He got permission to go study the effects of the radiation. I guess being the world's foremost expert on radiological effects on biology has its perks. If you call being allowed into a quarantined wasteland a perk.

The one percent started to rebuild. Granted, it was a rebuilding process different than anything anyone had ever seen before. That scared people. Specifically people in governments. There were many factors that led to the war. The final straw seemed to be the sinking of the USS Clinton, but in reality that was just an excuse. The battles had been planned out months in advance. The survivors fought hard, and used their newfound companionships with the mutated beasts that roamed their island. Even the animals seemed to figure out that they needed to band together with the humans in order to save their homeland. My father knew this, from his work with my grandfather, and warned the government not to go through with the plan. This is where my grandfather's story becomes my father's.

The war did not last long. The battle of Kijhoto was the last stand for the natives, and while they put up a long and brutal fight, they eventually fell. Japan fell. It became the property of the rest of the world; to be forgotten and ignored. A monument to the sins of nuclear researchers who weren't careful enough. In reality it was a monument to the terrible decisions of governments that were too scared to understand.

But while the world ignored it, the island quickly began its recovery. It was no longer called Japan, and within just one generation the people living here had completely dropped that name from their culture. The island was split into regions. The world governments each took a chunk, and figured it would be easier to control and monitor the population that way. This ultimately proved to be their undoing.

While the world turned a blind eye to the island, the natives that followed never stopped working to retake their land. The developed ways to interact with the monsters the radiation had created. Ways to control them and command them. Ways to train them and make them stronger. The population of the island rebounded as well. Almost unnaturally so. Much faster than any government could anticipate.

The revolution was swift. The outside world was expelled, and the people retook their land. The islands were reclaimed by their rightful owners. Again, the outside world decided a quarantine was the best course of action.

I moved here shortly after that, to expand on my father's work. Again, the perks of our field. I came to see and to study the interaction between these monsters and the people who now call this island home. It has been my life's work. I met my wife here. I have made a life here. I now call this island my home.

I understand the island far more than anyone from the outside. I know its dangers and its beauty. I know what the monsters here are capable of. I know what the people here are capable of. I never, in my wildest dreams, would have believed possible what you are planning. This marvel of nature turned into something for amusement.

You must forgive my ramblings. I recount the past, despite the fact that I am aware you know it well, to give you warning. To make you understand the nature of what it is you toy with. These creatures are not play things. I am now an old man, with grandchildren of my own. I have studied generations of the creatures that roam this island. You call them monsters; you are not wrong in that classification. Yet many find them to be pets, and useful for daily life. Religion has sprung up around them. Life has adapted to their presence.

And now, as the quarantine lifts, and you welcome the outside world back to your shores, you want to showcase these monsters as toys? You expect people who have only heard ghost stories and half truths to walk your beaches and fight with what nature has created? They do not understand what happened here. They will not respect the tradition. They will not respect the monsters themselves.

I do not wish to see this island, my home, turn into an amusement park. This land was not meant to be a safari zone for tourists.

You asked me for my opinion on this idea of yours. I assume you wanted a rubber stamp from the one outsider who could possibly give credence to your idea. To make yourselves feel better about it. I cannot give you that. I must insist that all plans be stopped immediately. These Pocket Monsters, as you call them, are not tools of war. Not anymore. Nor are they playthings, as you make them out to be with your proposed contest. Please heed my warnings. Many will die if you follow through with what you plan. This island has seen one war. It does not need to give the world a reason to start another.

The Pocket Monster League is, in my professional opinion, an incorrect use of the natural and unnatural wonders this island possesses. I do not give its operation my professional recommendation.

Sincerely,

Professor Samuel Oak Ph. D.

Director of Research – Pallet Laboratories


	2. Chapter 1: Off the Boat

**Chapter 1: Off the Boat**

Elizabeth's stomach tightened as the SS Anne's gangplanks lowered to the dock. She hadn't exactly come on a whim; no one would spend that kind of cash on a whim. But this was definitely Shane's idea. Picking up everything and moving to a new country took planning, and this trip had very little. Sure, they thought they had planned well, but the ten day trek across the ocean had given her time to think about just how unprepared they actually were.

Shane was too busy triple-checking the gear to notice the ship had come into port. All the clothes were packed correctly, hiking boots ready to go. Food and water tucked away in smell-resistant pouches so as to not attract unwanted monsters. The guidebook they had come in their trainer packets had been clear on how to stay safe on their adventure. They could apparently buy repellent at certain stores in the region, but for now they needed to keep their food safe. God forbid a giant monster come at them, when their own was still too weak to defend them. According to the guide, the first store where they could buy food was a day's hike away from the docks. Might even be two days if you aren't strong hikers or spend time exploring. Shane wasn't exactly sure why they couldn't just build the store on the docks, but it wasn't really his place to argue.

A soft ding, like a bell chime, emanated from the speaker build into the ceiling of their cabin. "Welcome to the Kanto Region," followed a soft female voice. "We will begin moving you to shore soon. Cabins on decks one through three will depart first, while decks four through six will form the second group. Please await further instructions."

Elizabeth turned from the railing to see Shane hoisting the hiking pack up to his shoulders. He'd never really been one for physical activity, so the equipment looked extremely out of place on his stocky body. She suppressed a smile to hide her amusement at his appearance as she grabbed the hiking pack next to his. Hers was smaller, as her own body type had been described more than once as "petite." She was definitely shorter than most, but tried to at least keep herself in decent physical shape. Despite the fact that the packs weighed the same, she was sure that hers felt much lighter on her shoulders than Shane's did on his.

"Are you excited?" asked Shane, sending her a quick glance.

Elizabeth just nodded. She wasn't sure how to feel at the moment. The dread of the unknown crept into her like a slowly rising tide. Every minute it felt a little stronger.

They turned and headed for the door. Their second deck cabin would allow them access to the first group being let off the large ship. The hallway was already starting to fill up when they left their room: others who were ready to begin their new lives on this island.

The PA system dinged again, and the female voice returned: "May I have your attention please. Those passengers in cabins on decks one through three may now disembark. The ramps are located at the bow of the ship, on the starboard side. You may go ashore there. Please do this in an orderly fashion, and please obey all directions given to you by ship staff. There will be enough monsters for everyone, you do not need to push and shove. Thank you."

The line started to slowly shuffle forward down the hallway. The bulky traveling gear now carried by nearly everyone made the hallway seem even more claustrophobic. As the line reached the door, arms instinctually flew to foreheads to block the bright sun that greeted the trainers.

Elizabeth squinted as she crossed the threshold onto the exposed deck of the ship. She joined the others in shading her eyes as her gaze fell to the island to her right. She couldn't see much of it. A high wall had been constructed just off the dock. There were wooden platforms that extended from the shore out to the ship, and what appeared to be a stage next to the only opening in the large stone wall. That opening was blocked by a large round boulder. Above the boulder, she could see only sky through the gap.

The line slowly filed its way down to the docks, where the crowd gathered like herded livestock around the small stage. When the last few passengers had made their way off the boat, a woman took the stage. She was tall and thin, with long black hair pulled back into a tight pony tail. She smiled as she spoke.

"Welcome, future trainers, to Kanto. My name is Sun, and I am happy to welcome you to our island." Her voice was heavily accented, but the English was easy enough to understand. It was magnified by speakers that Elizabeth couldn't see. Sun started pacing, looking over the faces of the crowd as she continued.

"Behind this wall is a land of creatures you have never seen before. It will be an adventure unlike any other. In just a minute, we will let you through the gate. On the other side are customs agents. They will make sure all of your papers are in order, and will provide you with some tools to get you started on your way. After that, you will have the chance to meet your first companion for your journey. This is an exciting day, and I'm glad you are here to join me as we reopen our island to the world."

A cheer went up from the crowd at her final words. She smiled and waved before departing down a set of stairs at the back of the stage. Elizabeth looked towards the gate, where the boulder that had been in front of the opening stood up and walked a few feet before settling back down. She blinked, wondering if the bright sun had played a trick on her eyes. A few people around her gasped, but most didn't see it. Those that did started moving towards the opening.

Eventually the throng of future trainers made their way to the opening. Because she had seen the boulder, or whatever it was, move out of the way, Elizabeth and Shane were one of the first to reach the opening. The wall had been built on the top of a hill, and as they entered through the gate, Elizabeth got her first view into the valley down below. The customs agents the speaker had mentioned were directly in front of her, waiting at their posts to greet the trainers. Beyond that, fenced in fields held creatures that were too small for her to make out at this distance. Half of the fenced in areas were just grass fields, while the other half seemed to be more rocky enclosures, similar to what she had seen in zoos.

The ten agents sat at a row of booths in front of the trainers, who were still gated in at either side. The line backed up here again, as only ten trainers could progress at a time. When their turn came, Elizabeth was beckoned to the booth right in front of her, while Shane was sent to the one at the far left side of the line. An older man with grey hair and a large smile greeted her.

"Welcome to the island," he said in a soft, yet happy voice. "What's your name, dear?"

"Elizabeth Beech," she replied, spelling her last name for him. He typed the name into the computer, then stared at the screen for a minute. Eventually her photo and information popped up.

"Ahh yes," said the agent. "Everything seems to be in good order here." He reached into the desk and pulled out a blue device that was a little bit bigger than her hand. "This is your index. It will be your primary source of information on your trip." He handed it to her, and she looked over the front. It was only a few inches wide, but tall. She felt a button on the right side and pressed it. The device sprung open like a book. The entire left side was a screen, while the right side had a smaller screen with several buttons below it. It wasn't a full keyboard, but it had enough buttons that Elizabeth was sure she could send messages with it.

"Here is your packet, mam," said the agent, snapping her attention from the index. He held out a manila envelope. "Your trainer card is in here. Make sure to scan it with your index to lock that one to yourself. There's some money in there to get you started as well. Part of your fee has been converted to our new currency. Also, your first ball is in there. You'll use it for the companion you pick down there." He jabbed a thumb down towards the fenced in areas. "Everything else you need: map, route information, etcetera, are all on your index. Good luck." He smiled cordially, and Elizabeth took that as her cue to move on and let the next trainer in.

As she walked down the hill, she glanced to her left and saw Shane hustling to join her. He was holding his index, he had gotten a red version, out in front of him reverently. His grin stretched from ear to ear.

"This is so cool," he said when he reached Elizabeth, his voice giddy with excitement. "I can't wait to get started."

Elizabeth returned his smile and took his hand in hers as they walked down the hill. The first paddock of creatures was immediately to their right. Being one of the first through the gate, there weren't too many people around the fences yet. The couple approached the first fence. There were no signs or labels telling them what these creatures were.

This enclosure held what appeared to be little brown foxes. They had big bushy white tails and around their necks they grew a white mane, almost like a lion. They were, however, only a few feet long and maybe a foot tall. Elizabeth had no idea what to call them. Except adorable. She would definitely call them adorable.

She knelt down and put her hand through the fence. It was a simple brown wooded fence, with three cross beams to prevent the monsters from slipping out. One of the creatures, who had been nosing through the grass nearby, took notice of Elizabeth's hand and trotted over cautiously. She held it there while the little fox thing gave it a sniff. Over her shoulder, she felt Shane moving. He had pulled out his index and was aiming it at the creature. She heard a snap, like a picture being taken, then heard a robotic voice proclaim: "Eevee. Small fox-like monster. Its DNA is unique, in that it has the ability to transform its genetic structure into a number of different things, given exposure to certain kinds of elemental radiation. This one is male."

Elizabeth pulled out her own index and noticed the small camera on the back for the first time. Turning back to the Eevee, she reached further into the pen and began to stroke its head. It's fur was velvety soft to touch.

"Good morning, folks, and welcome," came a voice from behind them. They turned to see a younger-looking man walking up to them, wearing a brown safari uniform and brimmed hat. "I'm Warden Tim. That Eevee seems to have taken an interest in you miss."

Elizabeth looked back down at the small creature, who was now standing on its hind legs, front legs propped against the fence and head poking out, trying to lick Elizabeth's hand. She giggled and gave the Eevee another pat on the head.

"He'd make a good companion," continued the warden. "Eevee are smart and loyal. Not the best fighters in the region, but they can get out of sticky situations might quick."

"I can't imagine you hurting a fly," said Elizabeth in a high pitched voice, not taking her eyes off the little fox. It was now happily licking her palm. She looked back up to Shane. "I think I want this one."

Shane just shook his head. "This is the first field. You don't even want to look at the other ones?"

"No," said Elizabeth. "I think this one specifically really wants to be my friend. I'll take him."

The warden smiled. "Sounds good, ma'am. You can go ahead and pick him up. You'll learn all about how to take care of them in that building over there." He turned to Shane. "You can wait and go together if you want."

"Thanks," said Shane as Elizabeth stood up, now cradling the Eevee in her arms. He gave a small squeak as she squeezed him up to her chest. He tried to lick her face, but only managed to get his small head to the bottom of her chin. She giggled as his tongue tickled her.

"Can we?" asked Shane, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Oh, what's your problem?" Elizabeth retorted. "Just because I didn't look around doesn't mean I won't be happy with my choice."

Shane didn't say anything as he walked to the next fence. This one surrounded a rocky enclosure where what appeared to be orange puppies were jumping over rocks and pouncing on each other. They had black stripes, similar to a tiger but nowhere near as numerous. Their white tails were matched by a white tuft of fur atop their heads. Some also sported white neck manes, not unlike her Eevee's. Shane reached for the index in his pocket, but a different warden got to them before he could reach it.

"Growlithe," said the short woman. She had to lean her head back to look up at them past the brim. "Once they get old enough they can breathe fire. They're a little young right now, though. You have to be careful with them, though. Sometimes their breath is enough to burn you."

As they watched, one of the larger puppies managed to tackle a smaller one, pinning it to the ground with his front paws. The larger pup visibly breathed in deeply, then opened his muzzle as if to roar. A small puff of black smoke slipped out the animal's teeth, but no fire came.

The warden chuckled. "He's a feisty one. He'll make for a great battler someday. A little overeager, maybe, but with the proper training he'll be a right terror." She glanced at Shane, as if trying to entice him into selecting her Growlithe as his companion.

Shane smiled back, but said, "I'll have to think about it. I want to see what else there is."

"Suit yourself," replied the small warden. "But don't be mad if he's gone when you get back. There's still a lot of trainers coming down that hill.

She wasn't wrong. The area between the enclosures was starting to get a little crowded, as more and more trainers passed through customs and made their way down the hill.

The two trainers moved to the next enclosure, another field, this one inhabited by purple and blue rabbit looking creatures. Elizabeth's eyes were instantly drawn to their ears. The blue ones were more rabbit-like, with their ears falling back over their bodies. The purple ones, though, had their ears sticking up like they were pinned, constantly alert for danger. Each variation had spikes trailing down their backs, but the purple one's spikes were much larger. They also had a little horn on their foreheads. As Shane and Elizabeth approached, a third warden greeted them.

"We call them Nidorans," the man explained. He had a thick black moustache and wore spectacles. Blue ones are female and purple ones are male. These guys are pretty interesting. As they grow, the males and females change into completely different species. Genetically speaking of course. We're not really sure why, and we haven't found anything else capable of doing that. It's fascinating, really." He adjusted his glasses on his nose.

"What element are they?" asked Shane. "I don't know much about that, but I know the Growlithes over there are fire elements, and the guy over by the Eevee enclosure said there were different types of elemental radiation."

"An observant one, I like that," replied the warden. "We've classified these guys with the poison element."

"I'm sorry, poison?" asked Elizabeth. Eevee had crawled up her arm and was now resting comfortably around her neck on her shoulders. She stroked his tail as she talked. "What do you mean poison?"

"You see that little horn there?" asked the warden, pointing to a male who had wandered close to the fence. "That thing will give you a prick that won't feel like much at the time, but slowly it releases a toxin that will shut down all of your organs."

Shane just stared at the man with his mouth gaping. The warden chuckled at the expression.

"Oh, it isn't that bad. Ones this small can't do any real damage to humans. And once they grow, assuming they like you, they can control whether or not they poison you when they sting. And there are antidotes, of course."

"Still, I think I'll check out the other options," replied Shane, slowly edging away from the Nidoran fence.

The next enclosure was full of small humanoid looking things that were lifting boulders and engaging in other weight-lifting poses. Some were wrestling each other near the top of the rocky peak that had been set up in the middle of their pen. Shane paid these no mind, however, because his eyes were solely focused on the fence of the next pasture. Whatever was in it had just shot a lightning bolt at one of the other ones.

They were yellow rodents, about the size of a football, with horizontal brown stripes down their backs and red dots on their cheeks. Elizabeth wasn't sure if her eyes were playing tricks on her, but their tails even seemed to look like little lightning bolts. Only a handful ran around the enclosure, no more than a dozen.

"What are these?" asked Shane, the hint of reverence returning to his voice. There was a warden leaning up against their fence, back to the creatures scurrying around inside.

She smiled as they walked up. "These are what we call Pikachu," she said. "They're tough to find in the wild, but the lab over in Pallet had a mother who died and she left this litter. Professor Oak wasn't really sure what to do with them, so he gave them to us."

"So how do you decide who gets one?" asked Shane, still not taking his eyes off the mice as they scampered over rocks, sending sparks at each other.

"We don't," replied the warden. "They do." She nodded backwards towards the rodents.

"I don't follow," said Shane, finally looking back at the warden. Elizabeth wore the same confused look.

"You touch one," explained the warden. "If you get zapped, you don't get one. If the Pikachu doesn't zap you, then you get to train it. Five people have gotten buzzed already this morning. None have gotten to keep one."

"How badly does it hurt?" asked Shane, the awe in his voice starting to show the slightest bits of fear.

"Wouldn't know," replied the warden jovially. "Never really had the desire to stick my hand in there. The other trainers didn't look too worse for wear, though. These guys are still pretty young, they don't pack much juice."

That seemed to help steel Shane's resolve a little, as he knelt down beside the fence and gingerly stuck his hand ever so slightly past the threshold. A few of the creatures looked his way, but none seemed to take any immediate interest in his fingers.

"It takes a minute," said the warden. "And it helps if you put your hand a little farther in."

Acting like that was the last advice he'd wanted to hear, Shane swallowed has he inched his hand a little farther into the enclosure. A Pikachu sitting on a nearby rock took notice of him, whiskers suddenly pulling in Shane's direction. The rodent sniffed the air curiously, before hopping off the rock and scuttling towards Shane's hand. Shane drew his breath as the creature drew closer.

The Pikachu stopped, about two inches from Shane's hand, and sat up on its hind legs. It sniffed the air all around him before placing a paw on Shane's outstretched finger. Shane tensed, expecting a jolt of electricity to flow through him, but none came. Instead, the small creature used its paws to try and pry open the other fingers on Shane's hand, which he had unconsciously clenched into a fist. The mouse used its front paws to hoist itself into Shane's open hand, and curled up in his palm. He was a little too big, but Shane quickly added his other hand to support the creature's head.

"Wow," said the warden, the shock evident in her voice. "Looks like you've got yourself a Pikachu." She didn't seem to be quite sure of what to say. She hadn't been expecting to give out any of the rodents today.

Shane pulled the furry creature out of the pen and against his chest. Almost instinctively, the rodent scampered up his arm and sat on his shoulder, much like Elizabeth's Eevee was currently doing. The Pikachu chitted at the Eevee. Eevee made a similar sound back.

"Looks like they like each other," said Elizabeth with a smile.

"You two will want to head into that building right there for orientation," said the warden. "They'll teach you how to take care of your companions."

"Great," said Shane, reaching up with his right hand to pat the Pikachu on his left shoulder. He felt a slight buzz of electricity has his hand passed over the mouse's red dotted cheek. "I'm ready to get going."

With that, Elizabeth and Shane turned and headed for the large building in front of them, new companions mounted happily on their shoulders.


	3. Chapter 2: Initiation

**Chapter 2: Initiation**

"When the monster is in the ball, it isn't resting. It isn't healing. It will come out in exactly the same shape it went in," explained the woman in the white lab coat.

Elizabeth jumped slightly when here Eevee appeared back on the table in a flash of light. At least this time she didn't scream, like she had when it disappeared. The red and white ball snapped shut in the instructor's hand.

"Your companions will still need to sleep. If they are injured, they will still need to be treated. Just putting them into the ball will not be enough. I suggest that when you go to sleep at night, you let them out of their balls so that they can do the same."

"But if we leave them in there all day, they won't get tired, right?" asked Shane, turning his own red and white sphere over in his hand, inspecting it. "Assuming they had just woken up when we put them back, that is."

"Right," answered the instructor. She was a skinny woman with red hair and freckles that Elizabeth was sure didn't belong anywhere near this island. Apparently researchers from other countries had been allowed in before the rest of the public during the quarantine. She had introduced herself as Bree.

"Does it hurt them?" asked Elizabeth, picking up Eevee and petting his head. He thanked her with a playful lick on the nose.

"Not at all," smiled Bree. "In fact, we're not entirely sure if they feel anything at all. We've done a lot of research into the transformation of their matter into light, but we still don't know everything." She handed the ball back to Elizabeth as she spoke. "We do know that some monsters experience a brief period of disorientation after being released from the ball. We're not sure if that's from their molecules re-aligning, or if the monster thinks it should be in one place, and is all of sudden in another. Imagine if you woke up back in your bed. You'd be pretty confused too. We don't know what their consciousness is like inside the ball. We haven't figured out if the sense the passage of time, for example. But the fact that they don't get tired leads us to believe they don't."

"Interesting," said Shane. He was sitting in a chair, Pikachu fast asleep on his lap. "So if I put him in the ball right now, and let him out tomorrow afternoon, he'll still be asleep?"

"Correct," replied Bree. "We've done that experiment multiple times on many different types of monsters. The result is always the same."

"What's this little hole in the back of the ball?" asked Elizabeth, noticing the small round opening for the first time. It was barely larger than a needle.

"That is for injections," Bree answered. "Say your Eevee got on the wrong side of a Nidoran horn and got poisoned. You could call it back to the ball, and inject the antidote through that little hole. Otherwise the poison will continue to spread, even if the Eevee is in the ball."

"But you said that it would come out exactly the same," interrupted Shane. "Nidoran's poison will still affect it?"

"Yes," said Bree. "The type of poison those monsters developed is immune to radiological changes. Something to do with the mutation. It will not stop spreading, even when the molecules are turned to light. There are many other things that can be injected via the ball. Most stores sell healing salves that will temporarily help injured companions. Of course, nothing is a substitute for actually getting the injured monster to a hospital. Some monsters, like your Eevee, respond to direct doses of elemental radiation. For example, you can inject a dose of fire radiation directly into the ball, and after a few days your Eevee will come out as a monster we call Flareon. It is quite impressive to see, actually."

"Well I think that you're good just the way you are," said Elizabeth, teasing the Eevee with a long piece of grass she'd plucked on the way in. The small fox was pouncing every time she stopped moving it.

A tone sounded through the speakers of the small room they were in, startling Pikachu awake. Shane felt a small jolt of electricity run through him as the skittish mouse sat upright quickly. Two small sparks escaped from the red dots on his cheeks.

"Easy there bud," said Shane reassuringly, patting the back of Pikachu's head. "Just the bell telling us it's time to move." He turned his attention to Bree. "Thanks for all your help," he said, standing and offering his hand. He scooped Pikachu off his lap with the other. Bree shook his outstretched hand with a smile.

"My pleasure," she said. "And good luck on your journey. The sparring rings are down the hall to the left."

The couple walked in silence, Eevee and Pikachu leading the way, down the quiet corridor. Being one of the first through the gate meant they were ahead of most trainers, who were still outside picking their companions. Elizabeth was ok with that. Others seemed to know what they were doing a lot more than she and Shane did.

Pikachu and Eevee came to an abrupt stop as the hallway turned. The two small monsters looked at each other for a moment, before turning and scampering back to their respective trainers. Both took their places atop the humans' shoulders. Shane's eyes went wide as he turned that corner and saw the entrance to the sparring area.

The room was a big open gymnasium, with a wooden floor covered in a layer of sand. White circles were pained every few feet down the length of the arena: the sparring rings.

"Welcome," said a jovial old man as they entered. He sat at a table near the door, holding a clipboard and furiously scribbling something on it. He had a white beard and glasses below a mat of messy grey hair. He hadn't looked up from his board until they approached the table.

"Wow, a Pikachu. I haven't seen one of those yet today." The rodent, understanding his cue, hopped down from Shane's shoulder and sat on its hind legs on the table. The older man reached out to pet it, and was greeted by a small jolt. Seemingly unfazed, he reached for his clipboard and looked it over again.

"You're looking for some training, I bet," he said with a grin. Elizabeth wondered if he'd be able to keep up his cheery posture once the flood of trainers outside all started spilling in. "We've got another couple that just came in, how would you like to go with them? Ring two, all the way down over there." He pointed to the far end of the gym. Elizabeth looked to Shane apprehensively; she wasn't too keen on sparring with some people they had never met. Shane however, was nodding and gathering up Pikachu from the table.

They thanked the man and set off. Most of the circles were still empty, but a lot of noise seemed to be coming from the far end of the area. As they approached, Shane and Elizabeth saw two small monsters running and jumping around each other in their circle. One of the small rabbit things, this one purple, was trying to avoid little spouts of flame shot out of the orange puppy's mouth. The puppy seemed to be holding its ground, forcing the rabbit to keep moving to stay away from its flame.

"Good job, Nidoran." The shouts from the trainers were starting to drift towards Shane and Elizabeth. A female voice was encouraging the Nidoran. "Keep using your speed, get around it if you can."

The small creature jumped to its left suddenly, avoiding a small fire spout that would have toasted it had it not jumped.

"Growlithe, try to bite, just watch out for that pin," said a male voice, much clearer now that Shane and Elizabeth were closer. The puppy put its head down and charged, but the Nidoran was much too quick. The small creature nimbly jumped out of the way, sending Growlithe skidding as it tried to find traction for a quick turn in the sand. He failed, however, and the orange dog flopped over to its side in a cloud of sand. The Nidoran took the opportunity to line up its own charge, and drive its small horn into the belly of the overturned Growlithe.

"Alright, you win," shouted the male trainer. It almost came out as a squeak, as he hurried over to the Growlithe and picked it up. Nidoran proudly returned to its own trainer, getting a pat on the head for its troubles.

"That's pretty impressive," said Shane as he and Elizabeth approached the sparring ring. "I thought Growlithe was going to get him for sure."

The female looked from Nidoran to Shane. She was about Shane's height, but athletically built. Her brown hair was pulled back into a tight pony tail. Her tight eyes and small nose made her face look angry as she turned, but that vanished instantly as she broke into a big smile.

"Thanks," she said as she bent down to pick up the Nidoran. "He's pretty quick. Fools most people." She shot a glance at the male trainer, who was still bent down and petting Growlith. The small dog had returned to its feet, but still looked a little woozy. The woman raised her voice to make sure her male counterpart could hear. "It's good to remember that asking a slower monster to directly attack a faster one is almost always a bad idea."

The male trainer sighed and walked over to the group, Growlithe following at his heels. "Yes dear," he said in a defeated tone. "I thought he might be able to get you, though." He then turned to Shane and Elizabeth. "You'll have to forgive my wife. She takes this rather seriously. I'm Andrew, by the way. This is Jen."

They all shook hands. Andrew was a bit shorter than his wife, and skinny, but not athletically built like she was. He wore round glasses and his combed black hair already showed some signs of thinning.

"How do you know all these things already," asked Elizabeth, watching Jen stroke the Nidoran in her arms. Her own Eevee was still perched on her shoulder, sniffing her ear.

"You learn by doing," replied Jen. "Why don't we have a quick little skirmish here and we'll see what you guys can do. If you can get a Pikachu, you must know what you're doing."

"I don't think…" started Elizabeth, but she never got to complete her thought.

"Let's do it," interrupted Shane enthusiastically. Elizabeth scowled at him, but Shane continued to smile. This was why he'd come all this way in the first place.

The four trainers stood on opposite ends of the ring; Shane and Elizabeth on one side, Andrew and Jen on the other. Their four companions faced each other in the circle. Growlithe appeared to have fully recovered from the small hit he'd taken earlier. Jen explained that she'd told Nidoran not to actually use poison for their previous battle, as she'd also done for this one. That reassured Elizabeth slightly.

Pikachu looked from Nidoran to Growlithe, then eventually to Eevee, his teammate. In what Elizabeth saw as an almost frighteningly human action, Pikachu stood on its hind legs and patted Eevee on the head, as to give it encouragement.

"Whenever you're ready," said Jen from across the ring. "You can count down from three."

Elizabeth didn't think she'd ever be ready, but as she looked at Shane he nodded and started counting.

"Three, two, one, GO!" He shouted. Immediately their foes shouted commands.

"Growlithe, Ember attack!"

"Nidoran, horn attack!"

Elizabeth wasn't sure what to even say to her Eevee. She didn't know what it could do. "Eevee, watch out!" was all she could muster.

The small fox seemed to understand what to do, however. As the purple Nidoran charged it, Eevee whipped its big bushy tail forward, drawing a small cloud of sand with it. Eevee whipped his tail forward, sending that could of sand directly into Nidoran's eyes. The purple monster kept its charge, but Eevee easily hopped out of its way, causing the Nidoran to stumble and roll.

Pikachu danced away as a small spout of flame fell to its feet. The mouse was fast, but the puppy was relentless. Pikachu never got a chance to get its footing and build up a charge, as the small fire blasts forced it to keep moving.

"Pikachu, try to get behind it," shouted Shane, trying to imitate the strategy he'd seen Jen use a few minutes earlier.

"Not this time," said Andrew under his breath as he watched his Growlithe turn and try to follow the rodent. "Growlithe, stay firm, keep making it move."

"Pikachu, tackle it," shouted Shane again. "If you can't jolt it, get in there and shock it."

The mouse obeyed, cutting off its path and turning sharply towards the orange dog. Growlithe seemed momentarily confused by the move, but regained its composure quickly enough to level another ember attack directly at the mouse's face. Pikachu dodged, but his attempted tackle was thwarted.

Eevee built up another small mound of sand with its tail, waiting for the Nidoran to get back to its feet. The purple monster did, but didn't charge the Eevee again. Instead, it circled, slowly, waiting for Eevee to make the first move.

"Good Nidoran," said Jen, "Let it come to you."

Elizabeth, infused with confidence by her Eevee's wonderful first sand attack, started giving it orders. "If he won't come to you, go get him Eevee, see if you can charge him then do that sand thing again!"

Jen laughed as the Eevee started running towards the Nidoran, tiny head down like a little battering ram. The small fox unleashed another cloud of sand as it approached, but Nidoran was ready this time. It hopped out of the way of the sand, turning sharply to chase the now sliding Eevee. Unable to find its footing and escape, Eevee could do nothing as Nidoran's horn found its mark. The fox let out a soft squeak as it fell.

Pikachu ran through the dust cloud kicked up by Eevee, trying to confuse the Growlithe that continued to shoot fire at it. The mouse changed directions in the sand cloud, coming out from where it went it, but had to turn sharply to avoid the Nidoran that was suddenly trying to stab it back on that side. Visibly panting, Pikachu stopped on the white chalk line of the sparring ring, catching its breath but keeping every sense it had up to avoid another attack of fire. None came, as the two opposing monsters met in the middle of the ring and watched, waiting for Pikachu to make its move. This reprieve finally allowed Pikachu to stand still for long enough to build up a little bit of an electric charge.

"Shock the Growlithe," commanded Shane.

Pikachu did as commanded, sending all small amount of electricity its little body had stored at the dog. Growlithe tried to react, but was too slow, as the jolt hit him in the forehead. Growlithe staggered for a minute, but quickly regained his composure and started aiming fire at Pikachu again.

Shane sighed as he watched his little companion once again scamper for its life as now two monsters chased it down.

"All right, I concede," said Shane finally. "He'll never be able to beat both of you together."

"Good call," replied Jen. She didn't say it condescendingly, but Elizabeth could sense a bit of pride in her voice. "Understanding the situation is also very important." She and Andrew both raised red and white spheres, aiming them at their respective companions. With a touch of a button, the monsters blinked brightly, and were suddenly gone.

"That's still going to take some getting used to," said Shane, who pulled out his own ball and aimed it at Pikachu. The small rodent seemed to flinch when he saw the ball, but blinked and disappeared a moment later. Shane inspected the ball for a minute before returning it to the belt holder they'd been given.

Elizabeth opted to scoop up Eevee in her arms and pet the fox lovingly. The four trainers met again in the middle of the circle. Jen looked at Eevee with a genuine look of concern.

"Nidoran didn't hurt him, did he?"

"I'm sure he'll be fine," said Elizabeth, running a finger down Eevee's back. The monster shivered, letting out another small squeak. "He's back to normal already."

"Good," said Jen. "You guys seemed pretty good. That Eevee sure knew how to defend itself."

"Thanks," replied Elizabeth. "But honestly I had no idea what I was doing. He did all the work." She patted Eevee again.

"Well, with training, for both you and your monsters, I think you'll do alright." She looked back at Andrew, who was looking at his index.

"Says here our next step is to learn about the league," said Andrew, noticing everyone's attention had fallen to him. "It's in the big auditorium on the other side of the building. Want to go and get good seats? Gym's getting a little crowded anyway."

Elizabeth hadn't noticed, but the gym was definitely starting to fill up with trainers now. The temperature seemed to be rising as well, as more and more Growlithes breathed fire around the training rings.

"Yeah," said Elizabeth. "I think we could all use a break. Let's go sit down for a while." She put Eevee on the ground and reached for her own ball, but the fox turned and started heading for the door before she could even get it off her belt.

The four trainers left the room, Eevee leading the way.


	4. Chapter 3: The Pocket Monster League

**Chapter 3: The Pocket Monster League**

The auditorium was nothing spectacular. A stage at the front gave way to rows of ascending seats in a semi-circle. The four trainers had taken spots in the front row, dead center. For a while, they were the only people in the room, casually chatting and talking about their homes. The room slowly filled with trainers awaiting their final required session before being released to explore the island.

The buzz of excitement grew to a crescendo as the chime sounded; summoning the last few trainers from the sparring room to the auditorium. As the stragglers started to file in, the lights in the seats dimmed, revealing a lone spotlight falling on a podium at the middle of the stage. A middle-aged Japanese man walked across to the podium, pulling out a pair of spectacles as he went. Applause greeted him as he adjusted the microphone.

"Welcome to Kanto," he said in English, but with a noticeable accent. "My name is professor Elm, and I have been selected to welcome you on behalf of the entire island!" More applause greeted his words.

Andrew turned to Jen, but whispered loud enough for Elizabeth to hear. "I thought you said Oak was the main professor for this region."

"He is," she hissed back. "But he refused to take part in this."

Elm waited for the applause to abate before continuing. "You are about to embark on an experience unlike any other. In the wild you will face many fascinating monsters. Hopefully you will be able to catch and train them. But in the end, only one trainer will be able to claim the grand prize." He pointed a remote over his right shoulder. With a soft _click_, the blackness turned into a projector screen that showed a picture of a large gold trophy.

"This is the Pocket Monster League trophy," he said. "It will be awarded to the grand champion in just over a year's time. In addition," he continued, "the winner will receive one million US dollars." Another wave of applause met that announcement. Elizabeth looked over and noticed Jen looking longingly at the photo of the trophy.

"But how will we determine who wins?" asked Elm when the clapping had once again ceased. "In many of the cities or areas across this region, we have founded clubs that focus on a specific type of monster. We call them gyms. Each gym has a leader, appointed by the game commission. If you are able to defeat that leader in battle with your monsters, you will receive a badge as proof of your victory. Everyone with 8 badges will be allowed to compete in the preliminary battles for our championship tournament."

He took a breath to let his words sink in.

"In exactly one year from today, we will begin our Pocket Monster League Grand Championship. Only 64 trainers will be able to compete. It will be a single elimination tournament. The last man or woman standing will win the trophy and the money."

More clapping. The professor smiled cordially as he waited for it to die.

"You have all selected Kanto as your starting region, and as such can only acquire badges from this region." The projector behind him turned into a map, with the Kanto region highlighted from the rest of the island. "There are twelve gyms you can visit, located in the cities indicated behind me." Twelve circles appeared on the map, with the names written above them. "This information is also located in your index. Each gym has a specialty, usually an element. There is one overarching rule for each gym battle, and it is important, so listen carefully: You cannot use a monster of the gyms weakness. For example, if you are in the fire gym, you cannot use monsters that are comprised mainly of the water element. That would be unfair for the gym. It will also force you to branch out and explore different types of monsters. We want you to have the most diverse team possible, so you will be ready for anything once the tournament rolls around. We've got a few surprises ready for the lucky 64 that make it."

Elizabeth was sitting so close she thought she could see a twinkle in the man's eye as he said that.

"Every gym will have different rules about how and when you can challenge the leader. We've left that up to them individually. Your indexes have maps and GPS systems. If you prefer to be old fashioned, paper maps are available as well."

The buzz was starting to return to the room. Elizabeth could sense the excitement that was building. Elm could apparently sense it as well.

"I must warn you, that this journey will not be easy." His voice went from jovial to serious in a split second. "The civilization you are used to does not exist out there. The wilderness is just that, wild. These creatures, these monsters, are dangerous. Yes, your Eevees and your Nidorans look cute, but there are creatures out there that are far from cute, and that can injure you gravely. Most cities or towns have Centers that treat injured monsters and people. These services will be offered to you at a discounted rate when you show them your trainer ID on your index. Please use them."

The room had certainly quieted down again. Almost unnaturally so. Elizabeth stifled a shiver as the professor continued.

"We make no guarantees that you will survive this journey." There was definitely a solemnity in his voice now. "We do not wish that fate on anybody, but survival is not something we can promise. You all agreed to that when you signed up. You have been given a companion to protect you. You will catch more companions as you go along. I assure you that you will grow attached to these companions. But I cannot stress enough that your life is more important than theirs. Should you find yourself in a situation where you must choose, always choose your own life first."

The silence in the hall was more deafening than a violent thunderstorm would have been. Trainers all through the audience exchanged nervous glances.

Elm sighed heavily. "I'm sorry. I do not wish to alarm you. The majority of you sitting here will never find your life in danger in any way. But it is something I must tell you. I have studied these monsters for many years, and I am all too well aware of the dangers they pose. The journey will be a difficult one, I promise you that. But it will also be one of the most rewarding things you ever do in your life."

That eased the tension in the room a little, but not much. The silence still stretched over the group.

Elm continued; his voice noticeably less tense. "For most, your journey will next take you to Pallet Town, which is just over the hills from here. It should only be a few hours hiking. We don't have any sort of mass transit available to you from here, unfortunately. Pallet will be your first supply stop. They have food, gear, and more balls to capture other monsters. From there, most will travel north to Viridian. The gym there will not be open. The leader decided to allow trainers to spread out and capture more monsters before challenging them. None of you will be ready for that challenge on your third day. From Viridian, the island opens up to you. The urban areas are just east of Viridian, with Vermillion being about 65 kilometers away. It is a long walk, but we do have trains that run between the cities. Remember that you will not experience new monsters if you take the train. From Vermillion, the urban area opens up to the north."

The map behind him was changing to show the routes as he described them.

"If, from here, you wish to travel east instead of north, Cinnabar Island has a gym. There are ferries that will take you there from the mainland, but those are limited, so be prepared to wait, days perhaps, if you wish to go that route. My personal suggestion is to travel the mainland first. But you are free to do as you wish. Most of the gyms are open and accepting challengers. Those that are not will be open in one month. Do not take gym challenges lightly. If you fail, you cannot challenge that gym again."

Elm shuffled the papers on the podium around before continuing. "This is all the information I have for you, but I can give you one other thing. My best wishes and all the luck I can possibly give. What you are setting out to do is unprecedented in history. I wish you all the very best."

Another round of applause followed Elm as he walked off the stage, but this one was far less enthusiastic. His warning about the perils of the journey seemed to still be lingering in their thoughts.

The trip to Pallet town was an uneventful one. The herd of trainers thundering over the small foothills between their docking site and the town seemed to scare off any monsters that would have been in the area. The sun was just finding its home in the western sky as at least a hundred trainers descended on the small town, which wasn't much more than some houses, a market, and a big fenced-in lab on the eastern side. Shane and Elizabeth decided to stay on the outskirts of town and set up camp. The town had built makeshift huts for the trainers, but their prices seemed exorbitant to the couple. Instead, they pitched their tent outside of town, and let Pikachu and Eevee out of their balls to scamper around.

"Mind if we camp with you guys?" asked a familiar voice from behind Shane. He turned just in time to see an orange blur, as Growlithe tackled him with playful licks to the face. Pikachu started to build up a charge to defend his trainer, but let it out with a puff when he realized that Andrew had just released that monster from his ball. Jen walked beside him.

"Not at all," said Elizabeth. "But we figured we'd get a bit of a later start tomorrow. The lines tonight and tomorrow morning for food and supplies are going to be really long. We are ok letting the masses go and following at our own pace."

"That's fine," said Jen, sitting down beside Shane and letting her pack fall with a thump to the ground. "We had similar plans anyway. I don't think starting a few hours after everyone will cause us to lose that much ground. Especially if we have a whole year." She let Nidoran out of his ball. The purple rabbit looked around warily for a second before settling down, seeming to fall asleep instantly.

"We should pitch our tent before it gets too dark," said Andrew, looking up at the waning sun. "We can worry about everything else tomorrow."

The four trainers set to work pitching the final tent, ready to begin their journey into the unknown.

* * *

><p>AN: I know there's a lot of exposition in the first few chapters here, but I felt it was necessary to really set the scene. You're in a world that you're familiar with, yet I'm trying to change it up a bit. There's this one chapter that is a little more description than action, and the adventure starts in Chapter 4. Thanks if you're with me so far, and I hope you enjoy as the story will really start to take off next chapter.<p> 


	5. Chapter 4: The Forest

AN: A note on locations. Since this is set in "real-world" Japan, and the pokemon towns in the game are based on real-life regions of Japan, I'm using the actual map of Japan as my map instead of the one presented in the game. Distances traveled and things like that are more-or-less accurate to real-world locations.

More information on the towns and their real-life counterparts is on Bulbapedia.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4: The Forest<strong>

"Good call with waiting until we got to Viridian to pick up supplies," said Shane. He had just walked through the automatic sliding doors, arms full of packages. "No lines at all. I could have used some help carrying everything here, though."

"Sorry," said Andrew. He reached out to relieve Shane of some of his burden. "Taking the train from Pallet to Viridian helps with that as well. I'm sure everyone else is still walking here." Jen and Andrew had decided to stay with Shane and Elizabeth, and to take the train to Viridian instead of making the forty mile hike. They figured the majority of trainers would want to make the hike, and getting away from the crush of humans would make wild monsters much more likely to appear. It would probably make traveling much less stressful in every regard.

Shane joined the rest of them sitting around a table in Viridian's League Center. The red-roofed building was on the north side of town, and reminded Elizabeth of a mix between a youth hostel and a hospital. The first floor of the building was set up like an emergency room, with nurses and doctors running around the hallways. She had seen one or two monsters wheeled past on stretchers. The upper floors, however, featured a cafeteria and rooms that trainers could rent out for cheap. They weren't much, just a few cots and a small bathroom, but after hiking for a few days Elizabeth was sure any amenity would be welcome.

Andrew had spread a map out over their table. Their indexes had GPS units and maps, but Andrew said he liked being able to write notes on where they had been and where they wanted to go. Shane noticed that the Japanese names of the cities had been crossed out with black marker, and new names written above them.

"We've got a couple options from here," he said. His pen traced some routes going out from Viridian. "Vermilion is east of here, about thirty-five miles. Not the toughest hike in the world either. Or we could hike to the shore and hop a ferry to Fuchsia city. If we want to bypass Vermilion, we can go directly to the Tokyo regions: Celadon would be about fifty miles. Or, we could head north to Pewter. It's a much longer hike, but it gets us closer to the northern towns. It will most likely be much less crowded up there too."

"Do we know what specialty the gyms have?" asked Shane. "That could play a role in where we go."

"We don't," replied Jen. "They've kept that a secret. Not that it will stay a secret for long, as trainers challenge the leaders and then go talking about it. But for now we're completely in the dark."

"We have some guesses, though," said Andrew quickly. He looked up from his map and pushed his glasses back up his nose with a finger. "For example, Vermilion, or Yokohama as you probably have heard of it, is one of the largest seaports in the country. We expect that gym is the water gym. Cinnabar Island, or Oshima Island, is an active volcano. Our guess is on fire for that one. Pewter sits in a mountain range, so probably rock or ground monsters there."

"But we don't know for sure," reaffirmed Jen. "As for suggestions, it will probably be the least-popular option with the group, but I vote we go north. We knew we were going to be hiking when we signed up for this, so we might as well get the big hike out of the way early. I say we go to Pewter."

"Why?" asked Elizabeth.

Jen leaned back into her chair, relaxing her posture. "Uniqueness. Most people will visit Pewter last, if it all. It'll be a last resort for a lot of trainers should they lose to other gym leaders. It is by far the most out-of-the-way gym in this region. Even for the northern gyms, it's really far west. And they'll take the train. It'll be a really long hike, but think about all the monsters we'll see in the foothills of the mountains. We'll get a lot of chances to strengthen our monsters, and we'll see a ton of other ones. Who knows, maybe there are monsters in these mountains that others won't be able to catch elsewhere."

"It won't be an easy journey," said Andrew, pouring over his map again. "Eighty miles through pretty hilly terrain. It will probably take at least a week."

"I'm up for it," said Shane, much to Elizabeth's surprise. They had done some "practice" hikes back home. Those had gone well enough, but they'd never done anything even close to the scale of eighty miles through wilderness. She hoped he wasn't getting in over his head.

"Well then I guess it is settled," said Andrew, folding up his map. "We'll set out for Pewter tomorrow morning. Make sure you let your monsters out of their balls to sleep tonight. We'll certainly need them on the trek."

The sun rose the next morning, but none of the trainers saw it. Heavy grey clouds shielded the sky from the morning rays. A chilly wind blew down from the mountains to the west, leaving Elizabeth shivering as she and her companions left the Center at what would have been the crack of dawn.

"We'll want to get into the forest a bit deeper before it starts to pour," said Andrew. "Hopefully some of the trees will give us decent cover."

The group left the city out the northern side, content to follow the old road for a time. The pavement made traveling easier, despite the fact that it was cracked and broken at points; a remnant of battles from the war. Eevee and Growlithe led the way. The group had decided to rotate the monsters on patrol. Since Growlithe and Pikachu had the best sense of smell, they would be on opposite shifts. Pikachu had gone so far as the throw a little fit when Shane tried to get him back inside his ball, but the rodent needed to stay fresh and awake for his watch later in the day. He wouldn't tire inside his sphere.

Growlithe enthusiastically pounced from crack to crack, sniffing around each one. Soon the eager dog turned his attention to sniffing the trees as the forest developed around them on the sides of the road. Small pines at first, recently planted to hide the scars of history. As they walked, the trees grew thicker and denser. They were reaching parts of the forest that had been cleared to allow a road, but beyond that had been untouched by human hands.

Three hours into the hike, the sun had started to fight through the clouds some, but the way was still dark and overcast. Eevee stopped abruptly, head snapping to his left. His ears perked up. A second later, Growlithe sniffed the air and turned to look at the same spot Eevee could see. Being far less cautious than the fox, the orange dog let out a loud bark and ran to that spot in the underbrush.

"No don't…" started Andrew, but it was too late. Growlithe disappeared into the foliage off the side of the road. A second loud bark came from the bushes a second later.

Eevee threw a glance back at Elizabeth, but started inching towards the forest himself. He waited for her to nod her head before darting off.

"I guess we're going in here," said Andrew with a shrug. "Be careful."

They weren't to the foothills proper yet, so the ground was still mostly flat. But the forest's floor couldn't actually be seen due to a thick layer of brush and plant growth. Elizabeth could just see a white tuft of hair sticking out of the overgrowth ahead. It wasn't moving. She opened her mouth to shout, but at that moment the Growlithe pounced. Its head appeared for a moment before diving back down into the greenery. A frightened yelp filled the air, but a moment later the dog emerged, looking quite pleased with himself; a green bug was clenched between his teeth. The bug was still wiggling. Andrew held out his index.

"Caterpie. Female.," said the robotic male voice. "A small monster that mutated from a caterpillar. Will change into a Metapod, a hardened cocoon like-state, then eventually emerge as a Butterfee, a type of butterfly."

"That is the biggest caterpillar I have ever seen," said Elizabeth, keeping her distance. The bug was at least 5 inches long, and quite plump.

"They grew a little when exposed to the radiation," said Andrew. He pulled one of the balls he'd purchased from his hiking gear. "Looks like I'll be the first one to catch a new monster. Growlithe, drop it."

The orange dog obeyed. He lowered his head and released the bug to the ground. His movement was surprisingly gentle. The bug tried to squirm away, but a beam of light shot from the ball in Andrew's hand. Caterpie froze when the light hit, as if paralyzed. After a second, it disappeared in a small flash. The ball in Andrew's hand shook slightly, but soon stopped with an audible _click_. He nodded at Growlithe approvingly.

"Good job not hurting him too much."

Growlithe barked in response.

Elizabeth walked over to the dog and gave him a pat on the head. "Did you see where Eevee went?"

The dog just tilted its head.

"Eevee!" called Elizabeth. Her voice echoed back to her from the trees. "Come back here!"

There was a rustle of brush to Elizabeth's left, but Eevee didn't appear. She hurriedly stepped over to where the rustle was. When she bent down, she let out a small scream.

Shane was at her side in a heartbeat. He let out a small gasp of his own when he looked down, and saw Eevee stuck in what looked like a spider web. The fox was trying to paw its way out, but every time it moved, it just got more tangled. Elizabeth reached a hand in to try and pull Eevee out, but quickly withdrew it when a small, sharp object stabbed into her finger. A muffled cry of pain escaped as she stood up and turned back to Jen and Andrew. She held her hand close to her body as she ran back to the road.

Growlithe jumped over to help and Pikachu appeared in a flash of light. The dog let out a small jet of flame, aiming in the general direction of where the object had come from. He scorched a few leaves, but didn't manage to hit the monster that had attacked. Pikachu disappeared into the brush, tip of his tail just visible above the green leaves. Shane could see sparks start to fly, as little arcs of lightning momentarily flashed over the plants. Pikachu appeared a moment later, another bug clenched in its tiny mouth. This one was brown, with a small pin-shaped object sticking out of its forehead. Shane reached for his index.

"Weedle. Female. The sting on its head produced a potent poison. If stung, apply antidote and seek help quickly. Will turn into a cocoon known as Kakauna, then emerge as a Beedril. A hornet."

Shane looked at Andrew, a note of panic on his face. "If she's been stung, we should get her back to the Center in Vermilion." He turned his attention back to Pikachu, still holding the Weedle, much like Growlithe had held Caterpie. But the Weedle wasn't moving. Scorch marks lined its sides. "You can drop it, it's dead," he said to the rodent. "Get Eevee out of that mess. We need to go."

Pikachu turned and got to work trying to pull Eevee free of the sticky web. Growlithe padded over as well, pawing at the strands gingerly. He was clearly uncomfortable with how it stuck to his paws. Pikachu's sharp front claws managed to do the trick, however, and in a few seconds a visibly relieved Eevee was free of its trap. He gave Pikachu an appreciative lick and with a flip of the tail started hopping back to his trainer.

Jen pulled a yellow bottle from bag, ripped the protective cover off and jabbed the needle into the designated slot. "It's just a Weedle," she said, reaching for Elizabeth's arm. "A sting won't kill you. At least not quickly." She pulled the needle from the bottle and gracefully stuck it into Elizabeth's shoulder. Elizabeth let out another small yelp of pain. "If that had been an Ekans or an Arbok this would be a whole other story." Elizabeth whimpered again as the needle was withdrawn, and half collapsed when Jen loosened her grip.

"Sorry," said Shane. He had just returned to the road, holding Eevee in his arms while Pikachu rode his shoulder. "She's not great with needles. You should have seen her when we had to get the anti-radiation shots to come here. I thought she was going to bite the doctor."

"Well I'm glad I'll come away with no teeth marks," replied Jen. The corners of her lips twitched. The closest she ever got to a smile. It was gone in a second. "We're only a few hours from town, but I think if we just let her wait for a little while, she'll be fine. It was only a Weedle. We can cook some food while we wait. That way we can keep walking straight though noon. It doesn't look like the sun is going to cause too much of an issue anyway."

What little sun had peaked through before was once again hidden behind a mask of gray clouds. Shane, Jen, and Andrew went to work setting up a small firepit. When it was ready, Growlithe provided a quick fire. Elizabeth shivered and laid down next to it.

"We really suck," said Shane as he sat on the ground next to her. "We're two hours in and we already have to stop because we got hurt."

"Elm did say it would be dangerous," offered Andrew. "And I'm sure we're not the only ones."

"Still," continued Shane. "It's day one. I was hoping we'd at least make it to the next town before something bad happened."

"Normally this wouldn't be a big deal," said Jen. She was sitting on the other side of Elizabeth, inspecting the hand where she had been stung. It seemed to be swelling quickly. "Weedles don't pack much poison in their stings. This seems to be something different. I've never seen anyone react like this to the poison. It's been enough time since I administered the antidote. She should be up and walking. Maybe she's allergic?"

"Or maybe that Weedle you killed wasn't what poisoned her."

The voice came from the woods, off to the right side of the road. The three trainers turned sharply in unison toward the source. Out of the brush stepped two men dressed in all black, masks over their faces. Pikachu let out a warning growl that Shane wasn't sure anyone but he could hear. Sparks started to snap from his cheeks.

"You might want to tell that vermin to take it easy," said one of the men. He spoke English, but with a heavy accent. He nodded towards something behind the trainer. Shane turned his head to look. From the other side of the road, the biggest snake Shane had ever seen appeared from the forest. The hooded beast was easily six feet long, and as thick as a tree trunk. It was solid purple, with orange and red ovals in its hood, outlined in black. The pattern looked like fiery eyes.

"An Arbok," said Jen. Her voice was barely more than a whisper, but Shane could sense the fear. "What do you want from us?" she asked, apparently mustering a bit more courage from somewhere. "Why did you poison our friend?"

"You folks are going to be an example," said the other masked man. His voice was a little higher-pitched than his counterparts, but the accent was just as heavy. "You think you can come to our island and take over? You stupid outsiders know nothing of our struggle the past few years. This is just some game to you. Well to use it is real life." There was venom in his last sentence.

"Please," said Shane, his voice reduced to a whimper. "Don't hurt us."

The masked figures just laughed. "We'll see about that. Arbok." The last word was a command. Shane didn't have time to turn around before he felt a sharp pain in the side of his neck. His eyes suddenly felt heavy, and the last thing he saw before they closed was Jen hitting the ground near him.


	6. Chapter 5: Hot Tin Roof

**Chapter 5: Hot Tin Roof**

He didn't move. The reality was he couldn't move. But Shane was content to lie perfectly still anyway. His nose was a few inches from the wooden planks of the floor. The air smelled wet. It must have finally rained while the masked men were moving his body.

His senses were slowly starting to return. Smell had come back first. The ringing in his ears was finally diminishing to the point where he could hear the soft _ping_ of drizzle hitting what must have been the roof of wherever they were. He could also feel the rope around his hands. They were pulled behind his back. He guessed his feet were bound as well, but he couldn't feel those yet.

As the feeling began to return to his body, so did the pain. It wasn't a sharp, stabbing pain. His muscles just ached, like he'd been out running or lifting weights for the past few hours. He did have a slight stabbing pain in his shoulder, and he guess that's where they had injected a small amount of antidote. Their captors appeared to want them alive, just immobilized.

The two masked men were speaking to each other in quick Japanese somewhere behind Shane. He didn't know the language, but by their tones it sounded like an argument. After a few minutes of back and forth, the sound of a chair scrapping across wood reached Shane's ears. Footsteps vibrated through the wood floorboards as one of the men walked through the room. His footsteps stopped but were truncated by a slamming door. Shane could feel someone stirring on the ground next to him. He held his breath, hoping that the remaining masked man hadn't heard. After a few seconds of silence, Shane let out his breath: the man apparently hadn't.

A second banging of the door announced his partner's return. His pace across the room was quicker on the return trip. Something hit what must have been the table with a _thud_. He resumed speaking in Japanese. Instead of the second man's voice, a radio crackle answered his sentence. He had his conversation over the radio for a minute before it cut off with a sharp crack.

"Go check if they're awake," said the first man in his thickly accented English. He sounded frustrated. The second obeyed wordlessly, scraping his chair back from the table and walking over to the captives with heavy footfalls. Shane bounced slightly with every step the man took, keeping his eyes tightly shut.

The man neared Shane, but didn't seem too keen on investigating heavily. After a second, he said something back in Japanese.

"They're tied up," said the first, returning to English. "You can give them a little more of the antidote. We don't want to kill them. Not yet."

The second man sighed in what sounded to Shane like a disapproving manner. The first seemed to sense that tone as well. He sharply replied: "Just watch them until I get back. They aren't going anywhere. But they need to be in one piece for when we are ready."

The man again crossed the wooden floor, and slammed the door as he left. Shane felt another jab of pain as a needle was plunged into his shoulder. The pain quickly abated, however, and the soreness he felt throughout his body seemed to ease up a bit. He still held his eyes tightly closed. Footsteps around him indicated that their captor was giving doses to everyone.

A heavy hand fell on Shane's shoulder, then started to shake him. "Wake up," said their captor. "We need to talk."

The last thing Shane wanted to do was open his eyes, but the last thing he wanted was for the man to turn violent. Slowly, Shane rolled over and opened his eyes.

His vision swam. He felt like he'd opened his eyes in the middle of the ocean during a raging storm. He tried to sit up, but a sudden bout of dizziness made him fall back to the floor. His hands were tied so tightly that he couldn't use them to help break his fall. He hit with a _thud_.

"Careful," said the masked man, sounding amused. "It will take a little while for the full effects of the antidote to kick in. You'll be…what is the American word…woozy for a bit."

Around Shane, the others started stirring in earnest. Their antidotes seemed to be kicking in as well. Through his foggy vision, he guessed Jen was immediately to his right, while Elizabeth and Andrew were just above his head. He took a second to compose himself, then tried to sit up again. His head spun, but he managed to keep his balance this time. He could see the masked man sitting in a chair to his left. They were in a small wooden hut; just a table and few chairs adorning the room. The door was to Shane's left, and a small single pane window displayed a tree outside, waving slowly in the breeze. The rain continued to beat softly on the tin roof.

"What do you want with us?" asked Shane. His voice was barely more than a croak.

"All will be explained in time," said the masked man coolly. He picked up a ball from the table and pressed the button. In a flash of light, a monster Shane had never seen before appeared next to the man's chair. It looked extremely human, but its skin had a blueish tint to it. The creature looked like a bodybuilder, with muscles protruding and bulging every time the thing moved. It wore black tights, with a gold belt that ran around its midsection. There was something inscribed in the belt, but Shane's vision wasn't near good enough yet to make them out. Instead of a nose, the thing looked like it had more of a broad snout. With his head starting to clear a bit, Shane realized this was probably the advanced form of that one human-looking starter he had avoided. He couldn't remember its name.

The man said something to the monster in Japanese. It walked over and picked Shane up like he was a sack of potatoes, heaving him over its shoulder. The monster carried Shane to a chair, and set him roughly set him down. It then put a hand on Shane's chest. The touch was soft, but as Shane tried to lean forward, the beast put enough pressure into its hand that Shane worried it might go through his chest.

The masked man stood up and untied Shane's hands. Again Shane squirmed, but the monster held him firmly to the chair. The man quickly readjusted the knots so they bound Shane's hands to the chair back. After a few seconds his feet were bound the same way. This process was repeated for the other three captives. When finished, the monster was returned to its ball.

The masked man began pacing in front of the four of them. The captives showed varying states of awareness. This didn't seem to bother him, as he started talking to them anyway. "In a little while, my partner will be returning with some camera equipment. You are going to be TV stars today. We want everyone to know that we have you."

"Why?" demanded Shane, cutting the man off. He was clearly the most lucid of the four.

The masked man stopped chuckled a bit, looking directly at Shane. "Because we can." He picked up his pacing, as though he'd never stopped. "We have some things we want you to read. You're the smallest group, so you'll go first. Be ready."

"Smallest group?" asked Shane. "How many other people have you kidnapped?"

Shane could see the man smirking, despite his mask. "Enough to be heard."

"You'll never get away with this," spat Jen. She was seated directly to Shane's left. She'd become much more aware in the past two minutes, and stared through the masked man with ferocity in her eyes. Her hand instinctively went to her belt clip, but Nidoran's ball was sitting on the table with everyone else's monsters.

He seemed to notice her move. "Nice try, but do you really think we're that stupid? Don't worry though; your monsters won't be killed. I'm sure we'll find uses for them."

Jen struggled against her restraints, but couldn't break free of the chair. To her left, Elizabeth and Andrew had both started to come to. As if being slapped across the face, they both snapped to a more attentive state when they realized their predicament. Andrew tugged against his ropes, while Elizabeth hopped up and down with the chair. The masked man just shook his head and turned back to the table.

"Who are you?" asked Shane. He didn't really have a plan, but he figured that if he kept the man talking it might help somewhat.

"I'm wearing a mask," said the man. He had an air of condescension in his voice. "Do you really think I'm going to tell you who I am?"

"Your group," replied Shane. "Surely you have given yourselves a name. If you want people to be scared of you."

"We go by The Rockets."

"The Rockets?" asked Jen. Her voice was still like solid ice. "Sounds like a dumb name to me."

The man didn't reply. Instead, he turned his head towards a noise that came from outside the hut. It sounded like something small was scraping against the wood plank walls. As he went to investigate, Shane turned his head and thought he saw a flash of something move past the window.

The Rocket started slightly as he poked his head out the door, and his hand instinctively went for the monster balls at his belt. Before his fingers could get there, a second hand reached out from beyond the door frame and grabbed his wrist. The masked man shouted in surprise. In a flash he had been turned, and was being dragged through the door and out of Shane's view. A second later he returned, both arms stuck behind his back. He was being forcibly pushed through the door by a second man. The newcomer was tall, with spiky red hair. He held the Rocket's arms in a vice grip.

"Not so tough without your monsters to back you up, are you?" he said. His voice was gravelly, and a little unsettling. He looked back to the door. "Charmander," he said, with a flick of his head towards the captives.

Shane hadn't even noticed the little lizard waddling into the hut. It was maybe two feet tall, with red scales and an orange belly. It walked unsteadily on two legs, and both its hands and its feet displayed sharp claws. Its tail came to a flickering point. The scales there reflected light so well it looked like the end of its tail was on fire.

The small creature walked over to the chairs and deftly slashed the ropes that held their feet. It then crawled up into their laps to cut the arm restraints. Shane noticed a warm sensation when the weird lizard crawled up on to him.

"Grab your monsters," said the strange man when they were free. He still held the Rocket tightly. "The other one will be back soon. Our monsters aren't that strong, but if we take him by surprise we'll have the upper hand." He then dragged the Rocket to one of the chairs and produced his own rope from somewhere in his clothing. In a few seconds, the masked man was the captive in his own hut.

"Thanks," said Jen. She grabbed Nidoran's ball and almost instantly the purple monster appeared. Its ears immediately pricked up as it turned to stare at the bound Rocket. Other flashes of light announced the arrivals of Pikachu, Growlithe, and Eevee.

"Who are you?" asked Andrew.

"My name is Lance," replied the man. Shane placed the man in his early thirties, only a few years older than himself. Lance picked up his Charmander and placed him on the table. "I was on the train with you from Pallet, but I doubt you'd remember that. I was getting ready to leave Viridian this morning when you four were. I meant to come talk to you, but I was delayed at the center. One of my companions was still injured." He absentmindedly played with the single monster ball still clipped to his belt. "So I was late. I had managed to catch you, but by the time I did the two men had shown up. I couldn't take on a full sized Arbok by myself, not with just a Charmander and with my original companion being injured."

"We should get out of here before the other one comes back," said Elizabeth. Her voice was still shaky. "We don't need to ambush him."

"They'll come after you," said Lance. He shot a glance to the main tied to the chair, who sat unmoving. "There's a lot of forest ahead of you, if you still plan on going to Pewter."

"I say we set the trap," said Jen. "But Nidoran won' be much help. This one only had the Machoke. The other one has the Arbok. If we can't grab him before he releases the snake, I won't be of any help. Nidoran's poison won't hurt Arbok."

Andrew nodded, and slapped his thigh. Growlithe turned his head and trotted back to his master. Andrew knelt down and said, "Go watch the door. Smell for the other one returning, let us know when he comes back."

The puppy yipped excitedly, and ran to the door. They didn't have to wait long. Within two minutes, Growlithe's nose went to the air and its ears perked up. He turned and ran back to Andrew, running a circle around his legs before jumping up on him. Andrew nodded quietly and acknowledged Growlithe with a pat on the head.

A shout came in Japanese. There was no reply, as the other Rocket had his mouth gagged in the chair. Lance had tied it tight enough that he couldn't even let out a muffled yell. A bright flash of light could be seen through the window, followed by the quiet _thud_ of something heavy hitting the ground outside.

"Well, there goes our ambush," whispered Lance.

The giant snake appeared at the door a second later. It froze for a second, apparently confused, as it only saw its master's friend tied to a chair. The elements of fire and electricity converged on it a split-second later. Growlithe and Charmander both shot a jet of flames from their maws, while Pikachu rubbed its cheeks and shot a spark of yellow light at the big snake.

The Arbok took the brunt of the blow without really flinching. It opened its jaw and let out a violent hiss before spitting at the nearest monster, Pikachu. Eevee came to Pikachu's rescue, whipping its tail and sending unseen dust particles up from the floor to knock the poison from its intended target.

The snake dropped down, throwing its long body at the Charmander and Growlthe who had grouped next to each other. The serpent fell with a mighty crash to the floor, sending Growlithe and Charmander running. Charmander tried to turn and loose another breath of flame, but Arbok's tail came sweeping around and knocked the small lizard back into the wall.

Growlithe and Pikachu managed to combine another attack on the snake, running flame and electricity down the purple scales. Arbok let out another loud hiss, snapping its head around to the two monsters. It opened its mouth to spit more acid, but Eevee again flashed its tail and blew a cloud of dust down the snake's throat.

Arbok pulled its body back up with what sounded to Shane like a cough. It again tried to drop itself on the nearby monsters, like a sledge trying to drive through a wall. Eevee tried to spring out of the way, but the heavy snake fell on his tail, pinning the fox down. Arbok's eyes narrowed, as it lashed out its tongue. Eevee let out a yelp as the tongue wrapped around its leg. Arbok raised his hood slightly, freeing Eevee's tail, but allowing the fox to be pulled back towards his mouth. The fox started to squeal louder and struggle frantically as Arbok began to retract its tongue, Eevee still attached.

Faster than Shane's eye could follow, and much faster than his brain could have even thought about telling his mouth to yell, Pikachu flashed forward, claws extended. The rodent's paws came straight down on the Arbok's tongue, severing it right behind Eevee's paw. The fox scampered away in a blink, and Arbok recoiled, fire burning in his eyes. Its tail whipped again, aiming for Pikachu. The rodent jumped out of the way effortlessly, but Arbok had been anticipating that. He opened his jaw and spit a dart directly where Pikachu landed. The dart struck home, and Pikachu collapsed in a small heap to the floor.

"No!" shouted Shane, reaching for his ball and trying to aim it at the downed rodent. Arbok's flailing body stayed between Shane and Pikachu, though, not allowing him a clear shot to recall the mouse.

Growlithe leapt at Arbok, landing on the snake's back and trying to find purchase for his claws between the purple scales. There wasn't one, however, and he slipped off the snake and landed on his back on the floor. In desperation, he opened his jaw and bellowed out a jet of flame at Arbok.

The snake seemed to again sense the blast coming, as it swung it tail away faster than a blink. The blast of flame hit the table, starting some of the papers that sat there on fire.

Jen had to jump out of the way to avoid the slashing tail. Nidoran hung back, unsure what to do. Shane ran around the battle, finally able to train the ball on Pikachu and recall it back. His bag with the antidote was still on the other side of the battle that was playing out in front of him.

Arbok wheeled around, turning on the Growlithe that was just getting back up to its feet. The snake's hood retracted slightly, as it drew up another venomous needle to shoot at the puppy. Eevee again tried to blow a puff of sand in the snake's face, but Arbok swung its hood like a wing and dissipated the cloud easily. The needle flew from Arbok's mouth and embedded in Growlithe's neck. The dog shuddered, then collapsed.

The table behind Arbok had caught fire in earnest now, the flames spreading from the paper to the wooden top. Shane took a second to marvel at how hot Growlithe's flames must be to set a table on fire from basically nothing.

Andrew had managed to recall Growlithe to its ball, but he too was unable to get across the room to the bags, which were dangerously close to the flaming table.

Arbok turned its attention to the two men, standing precariously against the back wall, unsure what to do. Nidoran bolted forward, nimbly climbing up the snake's back. Arbok shook violently, trying to throw the small monster from its hood. Nidoran held firm, continuing to paw up the snake where Growlithe had failed. Arbok fell back, trying to squish the Nidoran as it fell to the floor. Nidoran jumped off, rounding on Arbok as it hit the ground. The snake recovered quickly, but not before Nidoran jabbed its small horn into Arbok's eye. Arbok hissed in anger and bent its body away from the small monster.

The fire was spreading to the floor, causing the tied up rocket to more frantically try to undo his bonds. Arbok, trying to roll away from Nidoran, rolled directly into the flames. It let out a frantic screech as it lurched away, slamming into the bound Rocket. The chair shattered under the weight of the monster and human. There was a crunch as they hit the ground. Arbok recovered quickly, turning itself away from the fire, leaving the human lying, unmoving, in an awkward position on the ground.

"Charmander," shouted Lance, "Trap that snake."

The lizard opened its mouth and let out a jet of flame directly at the floor in front of Arbok. The snake hissed madly, shooting another poison needle at Charmander. It incinerated when it hit Charmander's flame breath. The rocket outside punched through the window, recalling Arbok to his ball. He turned and ran.

Lance turned to everyone inside. "Time to get out of here."

Elizabeth, Lance, and Jen returned their monsters to their balls, while Shane and Andrew sprinted across the room to the bags. The rockets had gone through them, but hadn't taken anything. They had been more concerned with getting their broadcast set up. Andrew pulled out two yellow syringes and handed one to Shane. In unison, they plunged the needles into the small holes into the back of the balls.

"Let's go," shouted Jen from the door. The fire had spread quickly, almost unnaturally so. Sweat was starting to bead on the men's foreheads as they jumped a wall of fire and ran to the door, exiting into the sunlight.

The rain had stopped at some point during their fight. The clouds gave way to a bright sun that beat down into the small clearing where the hut had been constructed. Shane turned, watching the structure become fully engulfed in flame.

"How can it burn like that?" he asked. "That wood is so wet from the rain." A big plume of smoke rose from the shack.

"Charmander's fire burns hotter than most," said Lance. "Growlithe's too."

"Should we do something about the one still in there?" asked Elizabeth. Her voice was small.

"No," said Lance quickly.

"We can't just let him die," replied Elizabeth.

"He would have killed you. Besides, no one is going back into that hut and coming out alive. You should go. The smoke will draw attention. We're still close enough to the city that they'll come investigate."

Shane snorted at that. "We can't even get more than a few miles away from the first town."

Lance smiled. "You showed good instincts in there. You'll do fine on your journey."

"We should get moving guys," said Jen. "It will be dark soon. If we want to head back to town, we need to get there before nightfall. If we want to keep moving, we'll need to set up a camp. Preferably far away from here. We don't want other members of their gang coming to investigate and stumbling into us."

"Will you come with us?" Elizabeth asked, turning to Lance. "We could use your help?

He just smiled at her. "No, sorry. I'm on my own path. Besides, I want to head back to Viridian and get my starting companion looked at again."

"Which one did you pick," asked Andrew curiously.

"Mine was special," Lance replied. "As a favor to Oak, I picked up one of his monsters to look after. It isn't much, just a big fish. I'd show you but there isn't any water here."

"Well then I vote we turn back," said Shane. "We go back to Viridian with Lance, and try again tomorrow. I'd like to get Pikachu looked at. Make sure he isn't poisoned too bad. I'm sure Andrew wants to do the same with Growlithe. We should go to the authorities about the Rockets as well."

Andrew nodded in agreement.

Jen looked slightly annoyed, but finally said, "Fine. But if they check out ok we should leave at the same time tomorrow."

Lance eyed the group. "I will agree to go with you back to Viridian, but I will not be leaving with you tomorrow."

The four all nodded, and turned south. The mood was gloomy as they trudged back to the road, and back to the city.


End file.
